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AIPAC
(American Israel Public Affairs Committee), www.aipac.org,
held their annual Policy Conference in Washington, D.C., this past week with
nearly 18,000 delegates in attendance. By far one of the largest conferences in
its history, it welcomed supporters of the American-Israel relationship from
around the world. Why do I advocate on behalf of the American-Israel
relationship through AIPAC?

First, the
complex issues that surround Israel on its borders and its existential threats from
abroad require an organization with a clear mission and multi-faceted forces to
accomplish it. AIPAC is the largest lobby in North America that educates U.S.
congressional leaders on critical issues related to the American-Israel
relationship, and brings dozens of congressional leaders to Israel, annually.
They provide information, data, and resources to secure the safety of America
and Israel, as allies in the worst neighborhood in the Middle East.

Second,
AIPAC gets results. Though AIPAC is regularly misunderstood as a right-wing
conservative lobby, it is also a lobby that aims to appeal to left-wing liberals,
too. Witness the hundreds of progressive rabbis and their congregants who
attended the conference this past week. Though they and their right-wing
colleagues may differ on social justice agendas, for example, they are bound
together by a clear political purpose for Israel.

At Policy
Conference this past week, the highlight, without question, was the appearance
of and message by U.S. Ambassador to the UN, Nikki Haley. Her recent remarks
about the U.S.’s support of Israel, and her command of our nation’s moral
authority on the subject of Israel’s sovereignty, right to exist, and ally
status, earned her the audience’s longest standing ovation. The Washington Post
reported, "The crowd luxuriated in her heartfelt identification with the Jewish
people as an Indian American and her reminder that, while she was governor, South
Carolina became the first state to pass anti-BDS legislation. But it was her
determination to go after the jackals at the UN, who single out Israel again
and again for demonization and calumny, which won over the crowd.” She famously
said, "I wear heels. It’s not for a fashion statement, it’s…ammunition.”

On the last
day of the Policy Conference, thousands of delegates headed to Capitol Hill to
attend scheduled meetings with their congressional leaders. In those meetings,
delegates were ready with talking points about issues to secure the
American-Israel relationship and to guarantee Israel’s well-being and future.
Delegates were equally prepared to talk about making peace with its enemies and
to dismantle obstacles to that peace; but, they were unwavering in their
determination to reach peace without jeopardizing Israel’s right to exist and to
defend its borders and citizens.

It’s been 50
years since the 1967 war. It was a time that galvanized Jewish American and
other support for the tiny fledgling nation. In 2017, Israel is still tiny but
now it’s a singular powerhouse of ingenuity and hope. From swamps to orchards,
from Haifa oranges to hi-tech innovation second only to Silicon Valley, Israel
is a miracle. With AIPAC’s role and our support, we can guarantee the miracle
of Israel and the future of the Jewish people. If not now, when? Indeed.

Our response to the crisis in Jewish
communities across America requires no collection of verses or teachings to
express our fear and rage. The populist movement that has spread across the
globe in Europe and America, but not the Netherlands (in a recent vote), is spewing
bigotry and racism that is all too familiar to us. Though it was relatively
dormant for decades, it’s running rampant now. What can we do?

No illusions. I urge you to acknowledge that
we might not have seen the worst, yet. I have great faith, but left unchecked
by law agencies and government bodies, we are going to face this increasing burden
by ourselves. Well-meaning advocates in the general community will join us,
like we join them, but usually only afterwards when we’re binding our wounds
and renewing efforts to defend ourselves. The 24-hour news cycle loves short
clips that tell a quick story full of emotions; but, they won’t serve the real
purpose, which is to end the incidents, altogether.

No fences. Today’s racists and anti-Semites
don’t care about physical fences, because we live in a social-media and
internet world. Disposable cellphones, computer hacks, and global social media are
their devices, which make fences obstacles to us, not to them. Perpetrators don’t
want to be caught, so they hide behind technology to inflict damage to our
psyches as they manipulate our fears. Prudence calls for us to protect our
houses of worship, JCCs, and other Jewish institutions, but cutting ourselves
off from the community isn’t our goal, it’s theirs.

No choice. Everyone must engage in their local
synagogue, JCC, ADL, AJC, Hillel, and other groups to advocate for the
protection of the Jewish community at home, on campus, etc. No improvement will
come unless we speak up, speak out, and become stronger and louder than they
are. The positive by-product is that we also reinforce defenses for other
religious groups that are threatened by similar racists and miscreants. I urge
you to call and ask how you can help. Ask how your synagogue or Jewish
organization is addressing security and how you can help? Ask how your
synagogue or Jewish organization is paying for the high price of added
security, at the expense of valued programs, services, and a balanced budget,
and send a donation to support them.

Last weekend, we celebrated Purim. We tend to
focus on Haman, the evil-doer, and Mordecai and Esther, the heroes; but it’s
been pointed out that King Ahasuerus is the one to watch. He’s impressionable,
weak, and unknowing. He surrounds himself with advisors who lead him astray and
feed his ego with praise. Until our heroes awaken him from his ego-soaked
reverie, he plans to destroy the Jews. Thankfully, he learns that Haman, and
not the Jews, is the one who must swing from the gallows. Oddly, God doesn’t
appear in the story at all. We’re taught that when God’s presence isn’t obvious
to us, then we must look to each other and find between us what God already
commanded us to do and to be.

The masks we wore on Purim shouldn’t blur the
truth for us. We can only play our parts well if we know what’s at risk and
what the end of the story must be. The risks have been learned by us over the
long arc of history and many among us carry personal accounts of it. Though we
never thought we’d be in this place, again, sadly we are. In history, the end
of the story is told by the victors. Let us see our present as clearly as our
past, and, together, envision the future we know must be there for us and our
neighbors. No illusions. No fences. No choice.

Given
by Steven Geiger, Founder and head of Mensch Foundation International, the word
"mensch” has reached new levels of meaning and popularity. President and Mrs.
Bush were moved by the gesture and the significance of the world’s recognition
of their lifetime of service. Neil Bush, son of the President and Mrs. Bush,
spoke passionately and emotionally about the role his parents have played to
secure the well-being of all people through commitments to literacy, equality,
and humanity.

Reverend
Dr. Russell Levenson, of St. Martin’s Episcopal Church, Houston, their reverend
and my friend, shared the occasion with us. As he noted, our Abrahamic faith
traditions do best when we identify God’s blessings in each other, and
especially in our nation’s leaders, President and Mrs. Bush, for the good they
have bestowed on us all.

Before
President and Mrs. Bush left for home, I had the privilege of blessing them on
the bimah, asking God’s presence to guide them and protect them, to be gracious
to them, and to grant to them good health and peace.

Gifts. They’re not what they seem. More than
wrapped packages we need to give or to be given, the most precious gifts are
the ones we already possess. Call it your DNA or God-given talents, your gifts
are in you. Now, the only question is what will you do with them?

Recently,
a family told me about their loved one whose gifts were in his hands.
Masterfully, his hands crafted remarkable objects out of wood, glue and nails
in his workshop. It was his artistic canvas where he did his best work. Though
they were just objects assembled out of simple materials, they reflected selfless
devotion to the ones who received them. They were his gifts to them. Likewise, but
sometimes less easily seen, we all possess gifts that need to be expressed so
that others might receive them, too.

This
week’s Torah portion, Terumah, includes God’s command to bring "gifts” for the
construction of the Tabernacle, God’s dwelling place among the people in the
wilderness. Everyone whose heart was moved was urged to contribute something.
The rabbis taught that even one person whose heart was moved sufficiently could
accomplish the entire task of constructing the Tabernacle. Such is the power of
the human heart to respond. Yet, Torah explains that artisans and craftsmen,
every person according to his or her ability and spirit, contributed to the
Tabernacle. To that end, so much was brought that Moses had to go out to the
people and tell them to stop bringing; they were over-subscribed.

Today,
we’re still commanded to bring "gifts” to reflect that God’s presence
accompanies us on our life’s journey, too. And, we still build sanctuaries just
as we were commanded, "Build me a sanctuary (mikdash) that I may dwell among
them” (Exodus 25:8). But, unlike our ancient ancestors, we know that
sanctuaries aren’t the only places where we seek and find God’s presence. For
centuries, Judaism has held that a spark of God resides in everything in
nature. Therefore, wherever we go, God’s presence is with us, not only in
sanctuaries.

The
greatest demonstration of God’s spark is the selfless devotion of the human
spirit towards the good. When one’s deed changes the world for the better, it’s
a gift given from a sacred source. A loved one who assembled a craft in his
workshop for his family brightened their lives. In turn, they paid it forward
many times. But, the opposite can also be true. The selfish possession of God’s
spark, as if it were given only to enrich or empower its holder, can lead to
insufferable deeds that destroy everything it touches. In recent weeks, in cities
across America, perpetrators have committed terrible acts of anti-Semitism,
including the destruction of grave markers in Jewish cemeteries, bomb threats
to JCC’s, and buildings scrawled with swastikas. They’re not acting on behalf
of any faith or its teachings. They’re not honoring any god who is worshiped.
And, they’re not respecting our nation. The response by gracious neighbors,
Jewish, Christian, and Muslim, assures us that we’re not alone; but, it also reminds
us that the tabernacle, God’s dwelling place among us, is still under
construction.

We’ll
protect and defend our houses of worship and we’ll reset the grave markers in
the cemeteries, but the hearts of offenders who plague us in our cities are a
work-in-progress. We must insist that they be brought to justice; and, if they
are, perhaps we can also turn their hearts towards the good. Some of the worst
offenders against us have turned; and, if there really is a spark of God within
them, then maybe they can use their gifts to join us in building a better
dwelling place in a world filled with God’s glory. But, if not, let’s not
pretend that any of this will simply go away. Let’s use the gifts inside us to
live by Torah, to honor God, and to respect our nation. Then we will have moved
our hearts, and, maybe then we can complete the work that needs to be done.